Gina put her arms round her in an awkward hug. 'But you have to think of Nicky, love...'
'Are you telling me that you think I should hand him over to Damon and his wife?' Sarah asked sickly.
'If his wife is willing and it's not just a front to keep Damon sweet... but then, how could you ever know whether it is or not? Don't look so betrayed,' Gina pleaded, her round face uncertain and engraved with lines of strain. 'I'm all mixed up too. I really don't know whatj to think any more. But the one thing I do feel is that Nicky's welfare ought to come first, and with the best will in the world... how can you match a tenth of what they can give him?'
'Money's not everything,' Sarah protested, distressedj by Gina's candour and pierced on her weakest flank byj the grudging acknowledgement that Nicky did have the right to a share of the Terzakis wealth... but surely not at the expense of grossly offending against Callie's memory? However, Gina was right... Ultimately, Nicky's i needs and future happiness had to be considered firstj and her own bitter feelings, painful as they were, must
not be allowed to colour her response to an offer of a loving, caring home from the other side of Nicky's family.
But, dear lord, Alex Terzakis had accused her of using Nicky as a weapon of revenge when nothing could be further from the truth! If Damon and his wife genuinely wished to bring Nicky up as their child, let them come and make that offer personally, let them demonstrate their sincerity and their whole-hearted desire to take him into their family... It was not Alex's job to do their talking for them! And then Sarah might well be forced to think again of what was best for Nicky. In the meantime, Nicky was not some kind of parcel to be posted off into the unknown. Dear God, she loved him! 'He's a tiny little baby and I reckon you're going to find him a far heavier burden than you ever found Callie,' Gina sighed. 'You'll have to live here with me. There is no other way.'
The following week was a period of turmoil for Sarah. Nicky was adorable but he didn't sleep very much. He didn't want to eat every four hours either; he wanted to eat constantly. Gina had never had anything to do with babies. She tried to help, but Sarah relied heavily and slavishly on every word of advice advanced by the health visitor. At the same time, she was still struggling to adjust to the reality that Callie really was gone.
The phone rang and she expected it to be Callie. She saw someone with long blonde hair in the street and was jolted. She visited her sister's grave three times in an anguished attempt to teach herself acceptance, but what made her alternately sob and rage most was the anger. And the anger was what she was least equipped to deal with.
Only with Alex Terzakis had she been able to let the anger out. She found that she couldn't open up with Gina. Presumably her hatred for Damon's brother allowed her to vent her true emotions freely, and that was good, not peculiar, good, she told herself repeatedly. And be had been a most satisfying target.
One week later to the day, Alex turned up again without warning. Gina was out. It was about eight in the evening. Sarah had just got out of her bath and shewas on the way to bed, having decided that the only sensible way to manage was to sleep when Nicky condescended to sleep. When the bell went, she groaned, reckoning it was yet another of Gina's friends, who frequently came round to gossip at night over a long gin and tonic.
But it was Alex Terzakis. Sarah was appalled. One slim hand grabbed at the loose neckline of her faded floral robe, the other frantically attempting to tighten the sash. She was immediately conscious that she was naked beneath the thin fabric, and that both embarrassed and infuriated her. 'What do you want now?' she muttered shakily.
He stepped gracefully past her. 'Five minutes of your time.'
If you'll excuse me, I'll get dressed,' she enunciated frigidly.
Coming through the door, he hadn't even looked at her. Now he did. Golden eyes wandered a most unwelcome path over her in the dim hall light. 'Why bother?' he drawled flatly. 'It wouldn't bother me if you were stark naked.'
Crimson ran up in a river of colour to her hairline. Her mouth closed tightly. She stalked past him and settled herself down on the sofa without any ceremony. The towel wrapped turban-style round her small head began to fall and with a jerky hand she trailed it off and threw it aside.
A cascade of silver-blonde hair fell in a silky tangle of disarray almost to her waist. He stopped dead in his tracks and dealt her an arrested glance. Sarah searched his suddenly narrowed golden gaze blankly and then looked over her shoulder to see what had attracted his attention. Gina's floral wallpaper covered by blooms the size of dinner-plates? The cuckoo clock?#p#分页标题#e#